With the romantic comedy niche growing by the minute, to really stand out in this crowded genre you need to do something a bit special, something different from everything else. Unfortunately "Made of Honour", starring Patrick Dempsey and Michelle Monaghan, doesn't and relies on a simplistic formula, imitating other movies and the charm of its stars to try and make it entertaining. What this means is that "Made of Honour" is your distinctly average romantic comedy outing and despite being slightly enjoyable fails to deliver enough romance or comedy to make it stand out.

In "Made of Honour" Patrick Dempsey (Sweet Home Alabama) plays Tom who loves his easy going life full of shallow relationships and no commitment except for that of his best friend Hannah (Michelle Monaghan - The Heartbreak Kid) who he has known since college. But when Hannah falls for a dashing Scotsman and asks Tom to do the unlikely job of being her maid of honour, Tom not only has to deal with a cavalcade of bridal catastrophes but also his own emotions as he realises that Hannah is the one for him.

The plot to "Made of Honour" is as straight forward and predictable as they come delivering cliche after cliche and little else. Even the underlying sentiment of "You Don't Know What You've Got Till its Gone" is sadly not pursued to full effect and so fails to deliver the chemistry between the characters and audience. This is the thing, despite being a story where you should be championing Tom to get it together with Hannah you really couldn't care as firstly you don't feel attached to the characters and secondly because "Made of Honour" is so predictable that you can guess the outcome long before it even heads in that direction.

Things are not helped with most of the comedy feeling too planned and several scenes coming across like they have been added in a blatant attempt to gain a laugh rather than enhance the actual story, such as the scenes surrounding the Highland Games or the lingerie scene. But what is more annoying is that dotted through out "Made of Honour" are some incredibly subtle moments which tip their hat to adult humour, such as the layout of the cushions in the lingerie store or Hannah's head movement when touching up an old painting. But all of these are so subtle that they are easily missed and so don't gain the laughs that they deserve.

Probably the worst thing about "Made of Honour" is that not only do you fail to connect with the characters they fail to connect with each other. I really struggled to believe that there was any real chemistry between Tom and Hannah despite each of them having their obvious charms. Yes Patrick Dempsey does look good as a male lead and Michelle Monaghan is undoubtedly as cute as a button as Hannah, but together the spark is missing.

As for the supporting cast, well again the characters followed the typical cliche formula. Tom's buddies, all of which he plays sport with, dispatch the sort of romantic wisdom an 11 year old would tell their friends. Whilst Hannah's bridesmaids are no more than stereotypes with an overweight one desperate to slim into her wedding outfit and one which has been left broken hearted by Tom in the past.

What this all boils down to is that quite simply "Made of Honour" is what it is, a run of the mill romantic comedy which never strays from the path well worn by other romantic comedies. Despite being average it's not terrible just, disappointing in the fact it doesn't challenge you with anything new and could be seen as a pick n mix of various scenes from other romantic comedies. Although Patrick Dempsey and Michelle Monaghan are likeable the chemistry doesn't come across making it feel quite dry.